His Best Friend
by Viperhat
Summary: Marlon had always been there, it was natural, he wasn't perfect and this entire situation highlighted that fact. But he didn't deserve a bullet to the head from the very kid he saved. But that was then and this was now, and he had to find within himself to forgive Aj... If not for his sake then Clementines. So he would try for her.
1. Loss

My boi, Louis needs some love to.

Warning: Spoilers for S4

(I have gone back and corrected a few grammatical errors and spelling mistakes so i do apologise for the false alarm.)

#-#

It had been days since the incident. To his knowledge at least, time was hard to perceive when you weren't paying attention after all. He could tell it was very early in the morning, maybe around 3:00 am or 4:00 am. The soft, cold-blue rays of the light pierced through the darkness of the boarding school room. His room, personalised to the brim with his items from the old world. Some things he still used, others left to gather dust and possibly a few bugs. Everyone else was likely still asleep.

Though he had always felt that something was up, he had trusted Marlon. He was his best friend, his oldest friend in fact. Marlon was the only one to befriend him all those years ago, before the old world collapsed into what it was now. Back when all he had to worry about was his piano lesson with Mr. Hague and trying to keep his only friend from leaving him all sad and lonely again.

It was through Marlon that he had learned of the things that he used to his own personal advantage now, the comedy of Lee Evans or Eddie Murphy to the fun and enjoyable side of school and life itself. And he knew without a doubt that it was because of Marlon that he was the Louis that he is today, the smart, amazingly talented and devilishly handsome Louis that could get along with even the coldest of survivors… He was the reason he wasn't dead, cold and alone or simply dead inside like his mother had been.

But now…

"That stupid, fucking kid!" He yelled, pain lacing his tongue as he struck the wall hard before wincing at the very real pain shooting up his hand and partially into his wrist. Though it was instantly forgotten to another wave of angry tears that streamed down his cheeks.

AJ… He wanted to turn the kids head into pulp, he wanted to burn the body. He wanted let let the tot corpse rise from hell and fall off a cliff-edge and land knees first into a bed of cacti or cantaloupe. God he hated that horrible stuff, almost as much as he hated AJ.

God, he hated him…

He had tried sleeping, but all he could think about was the broken expression on his friends face as he lost his mind. All of his little lies unravelling before him as Clementine - the newcomer and protector of the little shit in question - forced it all out in the open, as angry as he had ever seen a pretty girl get. She sure didn't like lies and deceit, that was for certain.

He remembered how she turned to him, her eyes pleading for his help as his _best friend_ held that gun to her face, ready to end her life. He didn't want her dead, he liked her more than well enough, and she had helped immensely with that find at the train station and they got along like two peas in a pod. Hell, he hadn't met anyone as amazing as her since he had met Marlon himself.

But he didn't want to believe that Marlon was capable of such treachery, such betrayal of friendship. Unfortunately, he had come to realise that he was both capable of that and capable of not telling him of that fact. He, his _best friend_ in the whole wide – walker infested – world, someone he trusted to the point of no return hadn't trusted him with his own secrets.

But, how could he have done that? To Tennessee, to Violet and himself?

In the end he had gotten between him and Clementine, and he could almost _feel_ the shock and betrayal oozing from his _best friend_. In retrospect, he had done the right thing, Marlon _had_ done those awful things, he _had_ been planning on letting Clementine and her psychopathic kid be taken by whoever was out there.

And when he finally let go of the gun, and asked, no- _pleaded_ to be allowed to become a bad memory to everyone there, to him, Louis knew then and there that he was guilty. He knew before, but watching him relinquish his hold on that gun was like watching it all become official in a way. Like he had signed the contract of punishment.

No, Marlon wasn't a bad guy, no matter the lies he told. He had to have made the best out of an awful situation. He wasn't a bad person, he was his _best friend_ and he knew him better than anyone - than even he - gave him credit for. Sure, he may have ended up hurting everyone, but he saw the pain in his friends eyes… He hated himself for those decisions, he had probably beat himself up every time he looked at Tenn or Violet.

But he had killed Brody in his own fear, that fear had almost ended with clementine dying to him to. Of that, he was truly guilty.

A cool breeze blew past his face, granting him a cooling tingle on his wet cheeks. Turning to look at the boarded up window he noticed the outside was far lighter than it was before. Had he really been sitting there staring at the damn wall for an hour or so?

"Damn it..."

Resignation filled him. No, Marlon had been guilty, but he couldn't blame him. Neither could he blame Clementine. She had only done right in the situation. Like choosing him to help her, not only did he know her better than most others there (besides the brat), but he also needed to see Marlon for what he was. He was a coward… But a coward with Good intention. A coward who had been forced to make terrible choices.

But AJ had _shot_ him…

He had made it back to his bed, looking down upon it like a vulture looks upon a carcass, and before he knew it, he had collapsed into the sheets like a puppet with the strings cut. Losing himself again to the sobbing.

"Why..." Sniffles broke up the heavy gasps and whimpers he made as he tried to talk. "Why did you kill him?"

He no longer knew who he was talking to. God, Maybe? Only God could be this cruel and unloving, was it not enough to take Sophie and Minerva away from them? Did he have to take Brody and Marlon to?

He remembered talking to Clem, telling her that Aasim gave him shit for living in the moment. But was there for him in _this_ moment? Pain? It wasn't a fantastic bargain in any way. What could he do?

He remembered shrugging the shock off his body the quickest, barging past Clem and screaming his _best friends_ name over and over. Blinking so many times, hoping that the gunshot wound would just disappear. But every time, all he would get for his efforts were his _best friends_ blank yet tear stained eyes boring into his own, accusing him, telling him that he was at fault. It wasn't! He hadn't done anything!

A sudden rage had filled him, he remembered. He looked up and swore and cursed at AJ, all whilst he looked at him with fear and confusion. Like he didn't know what he had done wrong! Like he had only spilled milk and not just murdered his _best friend_ who had surrendered!

He had felt Clementine pull him backwards, her arms quickly coiling around his own and across his waist as he felt his own body move. He was trying to get to AJ, he wanted to kill him, he wanted to maim a fucking child! He was stronger than Clementine, she was clearly struggling to even keep him from moving too fast. But then Aasim, had stepped in, holding him back with much more success than Clementine. That blasted male strength… He hadn't hated biology more than in that moment.

Finally, Violet had taken the gun from AJ and forced him to sit on the steps behind him. Telling him not to move. That was when he had finally lost his strength to fight, so all he could do was cry, yell, shout and curse.

He could feel Clementine hugging him at the time, trying her damnedest to comfort him. But she just didn't get it! It was her kid that did this to him, to Marlon.

But even now… he couldn't blame her. She was just as innocent as he was in all this…

But now, all he wanted to do was sleep…

#-#

"Come on, Clem." AJ pleaded, almost crying. "Please, talk to me!"

She couldn't, she couldn't even look at him. She remembered the look on his face before he realised that everyone was looking at him. It was the same looked she had seen Carver give his victims all those years ago. It was the same face he gave Kenny as he destroyed his face, caving his eye in and permanently scarring him.

She had a hard time forgetting the madman, despite the 5 years it had been since she had even seen him. The way AJ just killed a living person, no hesitation or regret – as much as it shamed her to admit – scared her. She hadn't raised him to be like that, to be like the psychopath who wanted to be his father. She taught him what she knew and tried her best to make him a good person despite the world they lived in.

But the way Louis looked at her after his decision to kill Marlon. He was never going to be the same again. He was never going to be the same, care-free guy who had loosened her and made her smile ever again.

She felt a tear go down her face and angrily wiped it away. She had only met him a day or two ago and he had brightened her world up. For so long she was so focussed on surviving that she had forgotten what it meant to live. But Louis had given her that chance and she couldn't thank him more.

He was special, she didn't want to him to lose who he was like she had. More importantly, she didn't want to lose him. She hadn't felt this strongly about someone, not since Lee. But this was different, she not only felt she be herself around him, or even afford to be herself, but she wanted to be around him, he made her day just that much more brighter, reminded her of a happiness she had forgotten about so long ago.

But what AJ had done…

"Clem!"

Sighing, she turned around from the wall to look at him. Her AJ wasn't doing too good. He was angry and scared. Weaponless and defenceless. He probably felt naked without it.

"Clem, please, what are we gonna do?"

He was desperate. But as much as she wanted to comfort him, hug him and tell him everything would be alright. The truth was that it probably wasn't. He had done this to the both of them and he would have to face the consequences.

"We are not going to do anything, AJ." Was all she answered with.

She heard AJ shuffle quickly.

"What do you mean?" He asked, she could hear the anger in him as he replied. "C'mon, I need our gun."

"My gun..."

That stopped him.

"What?"

She turned around again, glaring at him. "I said it is my gun AJ. You aren't getting it back for now."

"Why!?" He yelled. Looking at her like she had told him no sweets. "This is because I killed Marvin… Isn't it!?"

"His name was Marlon, Brat." A familiar voice jeered, and Clementine could feel the hatred it carried. "And you better damn well remember that."

When had he come in?

Looking to her right, she saw the form of Louis standing by the door. Glowering at AJ like he was a monster. Clementine wanted to tell him to stop staring at him like that, but realised that he actually had no reason to stop.

"Louis..." She looked up at him, but tore her gaze away when it was obvious he was to busy glaring at AJ.

"You better remember that, cause he ain't coming back anymore. You made sure to that." He snarled, pointing 'Chairles' at him before throwing it over his shoulder again. AJ at least had the decency to look away.

"He was going to hurt Clem." AJ mumbled, glaring back after a second. But it only seemed to annoy Louis further.

"No, he wasn't!"

"Please..." Clementine got up and gave AJ a look. "Go and lie down."

"But I don't wanna."

"Do it, now!" She didn't want to raise her voice to him, but he was going to cause more problems. "Louis is here to talk."

He nodded. "That I am." He motioned for her to come out with him, surprising her. Had he managed to convince the others that she was okay?

"Violet will take care of AJ until you get back. Don't worry." He said, looking over at Violet who gave her a sad smile before going in. At her look, Louis sighed. "Again, don't worry, as much as I may want to, I am not going to let anything happen to him."

She was sceptical, considering the hateful looks he had given him. But she had to trust him, she didn't want to be kicked out.

And she also felt that even now, he was going to keep his word.

"Hell, i'll even make you the grand Louis patented promise to not harm him if that helps you believe me." He stuck a hand onto his chest, just above his heart, looking at her, not showing a single sign or deceit.

"Follow me to the headmasters."

Nodding her head, Clementine allowed him to show her the way. Wondering what this was all about…

#-#

The headmasters office wasn't any different than it was when she had met Marlon in here. The same map resided over the table and the picture was in the same place. But Louis gave it no attention as he turned to sit down on the floor in front of the desk itself. But Clementine had no clue why.

He looked up to her, his smile not reaching his eyes like it used to. She inwardly winced, it was just another sign of what she had done to him.

"You can sit, you know?" He started, staring up at her. "I won't bite." She watched, about to sit down until he gave her a strained grin. "Well, unless you want me to, of course."

Clementine felt her cheeks heat up, knowing exactly what he was insinuating. But she still sat down besides him anyway, feeling his temperature envelope her from where she sat.

"You know." Louis looked at her, and only now could she see the subtle tear stains that marked his face. "I am putting my ass out on the line just to get you here. Omar and Aasim have been gunning for you to be kicked out, especially that brat of yours."

"He's still learning, Louis. He made a terrible mistake." She creased up a little, even she knew how weak that sounded. Louis gave her a depressed stare in response.

"Yeah, a mistake that cost my best friend his life." He looked away. "He wasn't a bad person, Clem."

"He killed Brody, Louis. Marlon still lied to you all."

"That doesn't matter!" He looked down, frustrated. "He wasn't trying to hurt us! He was given a bad choice and all he could do is make a bad choice."

"I know..." She said gently. Feeling a pang of guilt as his eyes dimmed just that little bit more. She desperately wanted to help him, but where did they stand now? Did he even want her comfort after AJ did what he had done. It would essentially be like hugging the knife that murdered your family.

"I don't know what to do, Clem." He shook his head, looking away from her and out the window. "Everything's falling apart. Marlon, he may have been lying and selling us all out… but he was keeping everything going and we all listened to him."

He got up, walking away from her and leaving her feeling lonelier and more cold. She instantly wanted him back to her side. But he didn't look back.

"But now, Aasim and I just won't stop arguing, we get nothing done, Violet can't go out to the shack on he own. And everyone is too focussed on what AJ did to us that we are just forgetting about our own need to live."

"But I don't know what I want anymore. I know I said that we only have the guarantee of the moment we have now. But what do I have now?" He looked down, feeling an overwhelming sense of pain as his thoughts raced back to _his best friend_. "My best friend is dead, dead because of your little boy. I can't do anything to stop my friends from going down this hole of shittiness. They won't listen to each other because the one they all did is gone and they just won't stop with the bullshit of kicking you out and I can't take it anymore… I- I can't take it..."

Suddenly, he felt a pair of arms wrap around him, bringing him closer to them. He looked back and saw Clementine, squeezing him with all her heart. He felt her warmth enclose him, weakening his resolve not to cry… He wanted to, but he didn't want to either, what was he feeling now?

"Clem, I-" He shook, trying to find the words that would not come. Her eyes, so beautiful and caring, for someone she had only known for a few days, made him feel safe enough to let it all out…

"Shit..." He muttered before hugging her back, bringing his head onto her shoulder as he trembled with anger, sadness and other emotions he couldn't process or understand.

"I'm sorry, Louis… I'm so sorry..." She whimpered in his ear, unintentionally making him shiver…

"Clem… please, don't leave… I'll do what I can for you to stay..."

"And AJ?"

He paused, god he hated AJ…

"Yes… Him too..."

She was silent for a while, neither, however, left their embrace…

But soon enough she answered him.

"You didn't even have to ask..."

#-#

Fin…

As i said, Louis needs some love. XD

To the guest Reviews:

1st - Cheers, i mostly got the idea due to my disappointment with the stuff that was already out. I felt that Louis just had his memory wiped when Clementine said something gentle to him and i remember cringing when he just went back to treating AJ normally. like he hadn't just shot Marlon in the forehead.

For the whole idea of Chapter: 2 - i will probably try and release one when the next episode is released, i want to play and then watch a bit of it so i get the events ingrained before i continue on this storyline. Needless to say, this will have rippling effects for the episodes to come. :D

2nd - I felt that the lack of other characters was unhelpful, but i want to see them interact a bit more first, because Omar literally only got one or two lines and never spoke afterward. I need more of a foothold on them before i commit, needless to say, though. I will certainly be trying to expand upon them all, including AJ.


	2. Break

**So… let's hope that telltale make a good deal or so, otherwise i'll have to make shit up… and I like to get very angsty and dark in my interpretations.**

 **Also, I know this is slightly outside of Canon given how Louis was in episode 2, but I am happy enough to say that he acted exactly how I thought he'd act instead of how I hoped he'd act. Also… I can work with what I have to still end it with what we have whilst still keeping Marlon Relevant in some way.**

# - #

"This shits so messed up." Louis sighed… His face collapsing into a frown as he looked over the courtyard. He sat against the pillar on the steps, back fully pressed against it as if he had lost the energy to sit up straight, his right leg brought close to his body, hand propped up on top of his knee.

The raiders hadn't gone without a fight, that's for sure. Destroying and burning their front gates, letting walkers inside and stealing his friends away from him… Aasim, Omar and even fucking Violet! Out of everyone there – excluding Clem – she was the one he thought would come out of this whole ordeal with them and okay. But he had no choice but to watch as he wrestled his collar out of that bastards grip, Violet was just herded, surrounded and unable to be helped…

And Mitch…

A heavy, uneven breath left him, he hadn't even realised that he had been holding it. Like his body was more focussed on keeping him from bursting into tears than it was on keeping him breathing… His face creased up, anger setting into his features, he looked up from the grounds and out towards the treeline of the woods.

He had never felt like this, he had never felt pure, unadulterated rage envelope him so fully before. He wanted to grab that Lilly bitch by the neck and watch as the life seeped from her face. He wanted to see that panic in one's eyes when they know they're going to die enter her own as she choked and silently pleaded for her life.

This what Marlon… _His best friend_ would have traded them all off to?

Shame creped up through his chest, letting the sudden and uncomfortable anger fizzle out, to his chagrin. Whilst he never wanted to feel that anger again, the new emotion wasn't anymore welcome to him, in some ways it sucked far more. His attitude towards Aj was unwarranted… At the time all he saw was his best friend lose his life to the kid he had saved. The two people they welcomed into the school, only lose their leader. He couldn't even bare look at Aj then, the day after that horrible incident, everyone held a vote and most wanted them gone, but Louis put his foot down, soon enough so did Violet and Tenn, even going as far as to say they'd go with them if they were voted out. They impressed him, and Louis didn't know how to react when they looked at him like he was meant to follow up alongside them…

"Godammit, Marlon." He whispered to himself, hoping to god that his friends, barely 20 metres away from him, wouldn't hear his turmoil. "You were my best friend, my brother… Why didn't you just fucking say something?"

"Because he was a coward..."

He sucked in a breath. His body freezing up at the voice he's grown to love, the voice that was shit talking his best friend and no matter how much he wanted to, he couldn't not understand her view.

"Clem?" He looked up, shadows of surprise refusing to leave his face as he did so. She looked beautiful in the orange light that bathed her. Like a fighter, a badass. A fucking master of the world they lived in even. She looked down on him with a hard yet… shy frown.

"Hey..." She said in return, unsure where she was trying to go with this…

He looked at her shift slightly, her face losing the edge it seemed to have when she came up to him. Leaving in its place a much more suitable yet small smile. It didn't reach up far, like it did an hour ago. It was then he realised that she was slightly bruised and sore looking. No bow in sight and no AJ either...

He didn't know whether that was a good thing or a bad thing…

It was clear that she was stuck for something to say, so he would have to begin for them both. Not that he minded of course.

"So… That Abel dude? Think he'll spill the proverbial beans?" He almost winced at that. _'Good job, Louis. Bring up that asshole who tried to kill her not a few minutes ago.'_

Luckily, Clem didn't seem to mind, though her expression started to mould into a dark stare. "He will if he knows what's good for him..."

God he loved this girl….

"Are you okay? I mean, Lilly did get you good."

She had to bring that up again… Her concerned gaze didn't help the embarrassed blush go down either. He had just seen that gun trained on Clem and he just… reacted. He didn't know what happened, but he felt that familiar anger build up from the memory of that bitch.

He had gotten a few good licks in, she probably had one hell of a black eye from his assault. But after that other woman came up and pulled him away, Lilly desperately kicked out and struck him hard in the face. After that, he was at their mercy, being helplessly dragged to the cart, almost bound to die at some war he knew nothing about.

"It doesn't feel as bad as my heart, that feels like Mitch had blown it up with a pipe bomb." He smirked a little, seeing Clem's face relax and settle at his humour. She was always good for a smile. "Hell, I am probably feeling a lot better than Baldy McFuckface over there."

He pointed to where Abel sat, his single hand tied to the post, his head down and breathing heavily. He heard Clem sigh as he looked at the man… He really was an ugly fucking dude, like a lorry had ran the son of a bitch's face over before reversing to finish the job.

"Never do that to me again..."

He looked at her with a start, seeing her eyes trained directly onto his own with a very real sense of fear he had never felt come from her. It was like she was holding onto his soul, forcing him to sit still. It… was uncomfortable. The orange hue cast upon her face seemed to only emphasis the fact that she was trying to drill something into his head.

"Never do what… I do lots of things and I-"

"Louis, I really do like you… But please… Just shut up and let me talk." She pleaded, closing her eyes and turning away from him. Whatever it was she was trying to say was weighing heavily on her and Louis – for once – didn't know what to say or do…

Why was being a boyfriend so difficult?… If that's what they were…

"You wanna take this somewhere less… public?" He offered. To which, she sighed unevenly, but eventually nodded and turned to walk into the school building.

"Uhh, hey… You wanna take this to the admins office?" He asked, gently placing a hand on her shoulder, feeling her shudders. They were very faint, but he could just feel them if he concentrated. His gut felt like it was turning, she was clearly trying hard not to fall to pieces right then.

"Yes." Was all she replied with, before turning around to follow him.

Taking a breath, he guided her towards the admins building, trying to avoid the gruesome sight of Mitch and enraging, slumped Abel tied to the post before entering the damaged building.

And somehow, he knew that the up and coming was going to be the most difficult he had since that night in the office.

# - #

"Okay, doors closed, and I get the feeling that I gonna-"

She instantly lunged at him, ignoring his quiet yelp, arms wrapping around his neck as she desperately squeezes him against her as if he'll leave if she relented even a bit before letting herself go.

The tears began to fall, all of her worries, her fear and anger rolling out one droplet at a time. Her sobs and breathing – both audible and broken – finally released into Louis' shoulder. He didn't move once except to bring his own arms around her, giving her some stability for which she was grateful. Her knees felt like they were slowly liquefying beneath her, buckling under her own sorrow.

She couldn't watch this happen again, not after everyone else. He was alive, but he was so close to being lost to her. Shame welled up inside her body, it was that thought, that Idea… that idea was what gave her the ability to even make the choice she made.

Louis or Violet…

Violet was a great friend, even if she was one of the many who wanted her gone. She eventually came around when she remembered what Marlon had done. But Louis was just… there. By her side, barely faltering. He had cared and protected her right to stay here, a place where she could stop worrying about her own safety as well as Aj's.

And after she had finally gathered up her courage to be selfish and confess to him, she didn't want to have that shred of happiness taken away from her. And watching Lilly kick him… and aim that fucking gun at his temple, it scared her more than any walker bite.

' _Fucking Lilly...'_

"Hey… uhh, don't cry…?" She heard him stumble, seemingly still awkward about what to say. She almost felt herself smile at that, he really was super cute when he was trying to be tender. But all she could picture in her head was a bullet tearing through his skull, silencing his witticisms forever, leaving a cold, empty shell that once held an amazing person within.

And all because she was at Lilly's mercy… Because he _saved her…_

"Please, never do that to me again." She looked up, not caring about the tear stains that were definitely on her cheeks. "You can't die… You just can't…"

She couldn't see too much of him through the darkness, night was truly here and the light was as suppressed as it could possibly be. Though from what what she saw, his face was morphed from one of solemn confusion before exploding into realisation… A realisation of what she was talking about.

"Oh.. That." He uttered, looking away. "I- I wasn't about to let a pretty face like yours be ruined… Bullets holes don't belong on you." He gave her one of those damn smiles, no matter how small and cautious it felt. But it didn't stop the what if…

"I don't care! You're the only good thing that's happened to me, to Aj in years." She cried back, almost losing her balance from the sudden shifting of her own weight. Louis, being the gentlemen, supported it all, stopping her fall. His face one of unending sympathy coupled with sadness.

It had been years since she had been this emotional, she had seen so much death that it was normal for her to ignore the screams, the pain, the loss and everything death entailed. But it was _Louis_. He was a constant highlight of her day, a shield to stave off the unbearable reality of the world around her. A reason to live for herself, not for someone else for the first time in years. And she almost lost that tonight, almost taken by the same bitch who took Lee's light from the beginning.

Why did the world want her to suffer so badly? What had she done to deserve that kind of life? Where all she had was promises and someone else's wishes to keep her going like some puppet?

Louis said nothing more, slowly bringing his head down and capturing her lips with his, taking her off guard before kissing back with force. Not caring about anything that moment. Feeling like a fucking shockwave rippling through her, curing her off her ills and bringing her life back to her within seconds.

And just like that, she felt everything leave her, the anger, her worries… They all left, only leaving her with a calmness that made her forget about standing up. She could have laughed when Louis let out yet another yelp as he helped her down gently before joining her on the ground, bringing her head to his shoulder, stroking the few strands of her curly hair with his fingers…

' _He's getting good at this… after only an hour too…'_

"Clem, I know you don't want to ear this, but-"

"If you say that you'd do it again to protect me i'll sew your mouth shut." She glared at him, making him shut up instantly. She didn't want to here that, she had enough of people dying for her, trying to make sure she had a life to live. Louis wasn't about to do the same fucking thing for her… To her…

He was stunned into silence, it seemed, so she took the chance to continue, unable to stop herself before she began tailing again.

"The last time I saw my parents, they were fucking walking corpses. The last time I saw Lee, he was turning into a walking corpse… The last time I saw Kenny, he was being eaten by walking corpses. All of them, fucking all of them wanted me to be happy, constantly sacrificing things for _my_ benefit, my _life_. When they ran out of things to give, they traded their lives, for my life! Leaving me with only promises being made and apologies being said!"

She was rambling now… but she couldn't help it. It was all true, Lee gave his life after she had fucked up. Kenny died because she crashed a fucking car and her parents… They spent their last moments, sending her a voice message, telling her that they loved her. For years she had been bottling it all up, she had a responsibility now, she had protected Aj since his birth. He was her little light, she couldn't afford to break, for him she had to be strong…

But now…

"A- And now," She gasped in a shuddering breath before carrying on. "You?… Please, please don't be one of them… Please don't become part of that list!" Her pleas left her, eerily reminiscing of those words she used when she was a kid, begging Lee not to turn, begging him not to succumb to the inevitable.

But Louis wasn't Lee… He could be more… he could be so much more…

A part of her was terrified of that. Lee's death had broke her, even now she could barely keep it together when thinking of him, only now was she beginning to heal from it. If she allowed this to continue with Louis and he…

Would she live long enough to heal from that kind of pain? Would Aj?

No… Aj would be fine… it would be all she'd be capable of doing anymore…

"Clem, I…" He stopped, trying to pick the right words. But hearing Clementine, h _is_ Clementine sounds so small, afraid… Broken… It didn't have the effect she probably wanted.

"Listen, if we are serious about what we have here? Then you know that I wouldn't be able to stop myself from protecting you… Not that you need my dumbass to do that." He chuckled wetly, not even realising his own tears. "Hell, you could probably murder me in 50 different ways on a bad day before I even knew what would be happening."

"But I know you would do the same for me, and I would feel awful if you got hurt because I sucked at my one job in this. I mean, I have a pretty big pedestal to step up to, being with you, i'm gonna have to learn to protect myself and others better than I already do if I wanna keep the other dudes off you."

She laughed a little at his stupid humour. The jokes weren't even funny, poor by his standards. But as much as she loathed to admit it, he was right. She couldn't doom him to a life she had lived, it was something she wouldn't wish upon her worst enemy… Even if they deserved it.

"Look at us, barely together for an hour and already having our first argument. It must be true love." He sighed, dramatically raising his hand to his forehead before looking up at the ceiling as if he were scandalised.

"You're the worst." Clementine laughed, slapping his shoulder as he chuckled at the pathetic hit. Though she did give his words some thought before feeling shy all over again. "So… Is it?"

"Hmm?" He looked at her, waiting for her to continue. "Is it what? Is it still a potato?"

She slapped his shoulder again.

"No! Is it true love?"

"Oh!" Louis blushed, actually blushed. "Only if you want it to be… I guess. D- Do you want it to be?"

"Maybe..." She smiled. "Though, we need to get our friends back…"

"How?" Louis stood up, giving her a hand in support as she did the same before leading the way out of the admins office. "We don't even know where they are. Let alone how we can even fight them."

"We don't..." She replied, her face setting in stone as she turned to look directly forward as they stepped back out to the carnage of the courtyard. "But we have someone who does."

He followed her gaze and realised who she was talking about, other began following them, Willy, Aj, Tenn… All of them followed the two of them to the figure tied up to the post next to the building.

He felt himself glare…

"Fuck..." Abel groaned, looking at them all with a sudden fear…

# - #

 **Now, do not get me wrong. I hope that the people who were let off get their rightful severance pay… But how do they expect a bankrupt, dying studio to pay them that? The only thing they could receive from Telltale at this point are maybe scrapes of pennies… if they're lucky.**

 **I hear everyone saying focus on the people first, but the people have all the support they can get. Multiple companies tripping over themselves to hire them, that is just good PR and talent for them. They won't really suffer because the chances they can get a job in time is relatively simplistic and they will be safe after the first month of working at the new jobs.**

 **Telltale and the fans though? If this severance is paid? They both only lose in that (if it comes from Telltale). The workers gets barely anything, the studio dies quicker and the fans have lighter wallets and nothing to show for it.**

 **My point Is, those who were laid off only win or break even in this situation, The fans however, will either win too or lose. So it annoys me that people let their empathy cloud their logic and judgement.**

 **Again, I state: I hope they get severance. Just not at the expense of the Walking Dead game, Because the workers wouldn't be where they are today if it wasn't for the fans and the fans wouldn't have what they have if it wasn't for the workers.**

 **That is reasonable…**

\- Viperhat


	3. Pyrrhic

_**Okay, so I am happy to say that I can now officially continue this shit, and moreover that Skybound deserve a fucking shrine built in their honour. Episode: 3 was one of the best episodes of the series. I'd place it up there with Season 1's episode 3.**_

 _ **But anyway, as usual, there are subtle changes and not so subtle changes, one of them in this chapter I think you'll definitely notice and probably hate me for. Oh well, only time will tell.**_

 _#-#_

It had been a bloodbath, one of the worst if Clementine had to be honest with herself…

Things almost fell apart immediately after she and her little team planted the bomb in the boiler of Lily's boat. One second, they were walking by another raider corpse, courtesy of herself, and the next she found herself hitting the floor with a loud thud, pain erupting in the back of her head, only waking up in time to see herself thrown into a cell of some sort, away from Aj, away from Louis…

And stuck with a pissed off Violet.

The small amount of light pouring into the cell via a hole in the ceiling just about covered the entire corner in which the blonde teen sat, huddled, almost motionless. Only looking up a small bit when she noticed her coming closer, at which point the hollow, defeated look on her face became tense and narrow-gazed.

' _Some fucking friend you are!'_

' _All you've done is get us hurt and killed...'_

' _You brought this on everyone, you.'_

Her words were still present, bouncing off the walls of her skull at terminal velocity making her thoughts erratic and unfocused. But the worse was to come when looking out from the bars to see Aj in the opposite cell in front of her, he looked fine… physically at least, but his face was pale, and it looked like he had been sick from the way he was sweating.

Physically, he was fine it seemed… but someone had but his mind through the ringer.

Luckily, she was able to see Aasim and Omar in the cell next to Aj, and she quickly made it a point to reassure them about their escape.

But even back then, she realised that she was forgetting something, but it was a complete mystery as to what that was.

And she carried that feeling throughout the following 30 minutes, as she made her silent promise to make sure Lily wasn't walking away from this mistake of an invasion, as she smashed Minerva to the ground and freed everyone. Even as she faced down Lily and got her ass handed to her before Aj stepped in, gun in hand and intent to kill in his eyes.

Watching the kid gun down that bitch… she didn't know how to describe the feeling. Just the pure knowledge that the woman who had killed Carley and stole her original groups RV, setting her group into Savannah, inadvertently setting up Lee's demise and being the catalyst for her suffering. The same woman, who had now come back to haunt her just when she thought she had found a true home…

Knowing she was dead felt like a weight had been lifted from her shoulders… but she remembered that weight being slammed back into place when she heard the other gunshots, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5… All accompanied by the sound of tearing flesh and spurting blood.

He shot the body of the bitch until he had no bullets left, defying the one rule she had drilled into him since he was able to hold a gun. But when he did, James had quickly taken the gun from him, looking at her with a look that made her guts churn painfully.

And then everyone remembered the bomb, and that the boat had been running for a while now…

And as if fate had read her thoughts, the boat exploded, sending everyone flying and her into the wall…

And that was where she found herself now…

It took her a moment to realise that she was underwater, narrowly avoiding certain death by a piece of heavy, sharp debris crashing through the waterline, giving her little time to get away from it.

She hadn't been given much chance to breathe before the water engulfed her, a small, panicked breath was all she got before being submerged, and now she was realising how little she had. Her head was pounding hard, likely from the heavy blow it took from the wall she hit. Her lungs were beginning to burn, setting the terror in her veins alight like a jolt of electric.

Memories of the first time she found herself being at the mercy of a large body of water surfaced, almost freezing her up then and there before she realised that the water wasn't pulling her anywhere, but her body acted as if it was, her mind knew, but her body didn't care, she just wanted air as soon as possible.

She could only see the waterline due to the fire that illuminated the water, but the sight was enough to convince her to swim just that little bit faster. Her body was screaming for the succulent intake of oxygen, her previous breath all but gone and her lungs starved, but with each desperate stroke, she finally felt the compressing water fall below her nose and soon after past her chin.

Immediately, she gasped deeply, giving her body the sweet air it so vigorously craved. Feeling the sweet night air hit her skin after what felt like forever, Clementine's eyes shot back open the second they closed when remembering the peril she and her friends were in. But her sigh was assaulted by the intense burning light of the fire contrasted by the darkening night sky, pieces of the ship were still managing to keep afloat above the water, remnants of what used to be Lily's intimidating task force.

"Aj!" She called out, coughing a little as some of the water unexpectedly splashed into her mouth, making her choke hard on the invading liquid. "Aj!" She tried to scan the water for the boy, but all she could see were the few bodies of raiders she didn't recognise and one or two retreating figures in near the shore-line. A flicker of hope was ignited in her gut as she saw the familiar chequered jacket dragging a noticeably smaller figure from the water. Though her vision was a little blurry from the beating she had taken, she would recognise her boys hair. Not many survivors had his type of afro.

Slowly, her eyes regained focus. Giving her a clear view of Aasim helping Aj scamper away from the river and into the woods, thankfully away from the slowly encroaching herd of walkers. But the slowly approaching threat left her in an awkward situation, whether she chose to make a mad dash for the shore and hope the walkers didn't beat her to it, or she she waited them out in one of the floating ruins of Lily boat, hoping that they'd go away or at least not infest the water too much.

She gave the two boys a sparing glance, she would have thank Aasim next time she saw him for getting Aj to safety. But before thinking on it any further, she could see that the walkers were much closer than she anticipated, she had maybe a minute before they swarmed the shore and then she'd be stuck, even then, she had no idea if she would be fit to fight right now, her head throbbed, Lily hadn't be kind, nor was she an easy kill by any means. If she got surrounded she wouldn't survive for too long in her state.

With that in mind, she turned slightly and began stroking towards the nearest wreck she could find.

"There better be fucking something…" She moaned, feeling her body strain.

 _#-#_

He didn't dare move…

His mind, body and soul demanded it of him. Whether his wish was to do otherwise or not. But luckily, he was not planning on moving anytime soon.

So there he sat, in the darkness. Slowly rocking, cheeks, tear stained and bruised, eyes red from crying, unseeing and traumatised, staring only at what the darkness allowed him to see. He didn't even notice the small light peeking from the hallway before him, nor did he recognise the wetness around his legs. Nothing but pain registered with him.

He did catch his attention was the sudden figure peering through the doorway. He looked up and was horrified by it, he couldn't see the person properly, all he could see was the feminine look she had and the sudden gasp she gave when seeing him.

"Louis!" The figure exclaimed, but as soon as she said anything, he didn't need to guess as to who it was anymore. He looked up, eyes once in their own world now brimming with awareness, with shock.

She was here…

She came for him…

With a speed he didn't know she could possess, Clementine had rushed over to him, trying to see him better in almost complete blackness. How she even saw him was a mystery, but right now, he didn't care. Suddenly, he sprang forward, clumsily splashing the water with his hand as he wrapped both arms around her smaller frame, sobs quickly racking his body.

After a moment of surprise, she quickly returned the affection. Resting her head on his shoulder, feeling the shaking and strain that had completely overtaken him. She slowly squeezed her eyes shut, after everything that had transpired throughout the night, Minerva, Lily, Violet's betrayal… How had she forgotten about him?

How _could_ she have forgotten about _him_?

He was here for a while, just like she had been. But the way he was holding her right now, the way his voice wavered and broke up several times as he quietly broke down…

She removed herself from him, only barely catching the hint of a ghostly smile on his face, marred by the unmistakable shine of blood…

"What did they do to you?" She whispered, trying not to scare him. But she felt him tense a little anyway. Her heart clenched at the realisation. But she shook it away, now wasn't about her, it was her fault he was like this anyway.

He moaned painfully, but never replied to her. He just started shaking again.

"Louis?" She asked again, more worry seeping into her tone than she realised.

But, yet again, all she got in response was anything short of a sentence. But she caught the shaking of his head, as if his mind was plagued with nightmares in his waking hours.

"Louis… Please, tell me what's-"

"…!"

His scream was muted, but the suddenness of it had Clementine landing on her ass and into the deep puddle below, startled and spooked. Watching out of pure worry as Louis slowly pulled himself up, staggering too much as he limped over towards the cell door, into the light, turning around to show her the damage that he been done… Only to slump against the wall again, the only change was the sudden moonlight hitting his face…

It was then that Clementine began to feel her own body shake… Looking at what used to be the sweet, cheerful, confident guy she had fell for. His eyes, shiny and swollen slightly on one side, red from crying, were looking at her drunkenly. She could see the pure pain erupting from within, watching as it all burned away at what used to be one of the most amazing things about him.

Tearing herself away from the eyes, the most obvious thing registered in her mind….

 _The blood… Oh my god, the blood…_

His bruised and beaten face was caked in it, HIS blood was smeared all over him, still dripping a little from his chin. His lips were unable to be seen through the thick plasma as parts of t began to dry up and crack across his lips. His teeth looked like they had been tearing through flesh, but giving the bruises, it was likely he had been beaten badly…

His clothes had an awful, thick stain of red on them too, a stain that would probably never come out. Clementine couldn't believe her eyes at just how much blood was lost…

"Oh my god, Louis!" She whimpered, slowly bringing herself over to him, the tiredness in her muscles now choosing to make every movement feel like a mile long hike. She grabbed him gently looking at him with such an intensity that it made him look down.

He was the cause of her suffering… Just as he was the cause of his own…

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry..." She whispered, barely keeping herself together. It wasn't right for her to be the one breaking down because she got him hurt. It took everything she had not to just hold him close and never let go.

But then, he looked back up, and Clementine could feel the shame radiating from him. But something forced her to look right back as he opened his mouth slowly, hesitantly, her sight regretfully settling on the lack of tongue he had missing from his mouth, still slightly leaking blood and lightly twitching painfully.

Her eyes widened in horror, her body freezing up at the implications…

' _Louis…. My Louis… Oh no…. Fuck!'_

"No… No, no, no, no!" She shook her head, her eyes once again slamming shut. She wished that this was but a really bad dream, a nightmare, a mere perversion of what would really happen in this rescue. Anything was better than this…

' _Not him. Not Louis, why did it have to be you?'_

She quickly brought her arms back around him, holding him closely to her making him whimper slightly from the sudden nature, afraid that if she let up on him even a little bit that he would disappear in her arms. That was when she heard the soft weeping coming from her boyfriend. Hr boyfriend, who didn't deserve any of this.

The damn broke for her too. And everything that had been brewing since the raiders attack on the school, the capture of Violet, Aasim and Omar. The death of Mitch under her plan. Abel's viscousness, Violet's betrayal, Lily's death…

Clementine cried, for what felt like the first time in a long time… Heavy sobs hitting her gut hard, forcing her to curl into herself as she held on to her broken Boyfriend as if her life depended on it. The selfishness she felt from crying when he was the one who was hurt only added to the guilt she felt.

' _Violet had a point after-all...'_

She couldn't blame anyone else for this. She wanted to, by god did she want to… But she knew that this was her doing. Louis' suffering was on her… She caused this…

The two sat there, unable to remove themselves from the other as every little thing that troubled them, plagued their minds, festered in their waking hours was aired, corrupting the sky with their subdued cries and explosive emotions as it mixed with the fire and smoke outside.

#-#

(5 Hours Later)

"Look, Aj..." Aasim groaned, his nerves frayed more than they ever had been before. His hand covering his face as he tried to find the right words to placate the volatile boy in front of him. It had been a while since they had escaped the boat, daylight had begun breaking through the leaves of the forest. He knew that Omar was being seen to by Ruby, who had managed to wrangle one of the fleeing horses before taking it back here. Violet had to be dragged out of the boat, and he was still unsure as to why Ruby insisted on bringing Minerva back with them. But both found themselves being placed next to Omar.

"No!" Was what he heard instantly, a clear frustrated edge in his voice. Aj was clearly not going to listen anymore to his instruction. "We've done enough waiting, Clem's out there, Louis too!"

He stepped towards him, glaring through his hand. Aasim felt the annoyance he usually felt for being bugged rise within him yet again. Aj had been begging to go back to rescue Clementine and Louis. He had last seen Clem when she had gone up to do what she had to against Lily, he had no clue if she was even alive and he had no clue that Louis was even on the boat, he hadn't seen him at all since he was stolen from his home.

Truth be told, he wanted to go back too, but James said he was going to make sure the coast was clear, that he would be back soon.

That was over an hour ago…

' _Fuck it.'_ He thought, it would also shut Aj up.

He stood up, motioning Aj to step back as he bent back down to pick up the rifle James had left behind. According to him, it had a full magazine inside and ready to go.

"Fine, but if we don't find them within the hour, we are coming back, got it?" He gave the boy a stern look.

The kid nodded. A determined frown on his face, though there was something about the kid that was… unnerving him. He had been acting a little strange since he had come back from the boat.

He turned around. "Hey, Ruby." He called, managing to draw the girls attention to him. "Look, i'm going to go with Aj and scout along the shoreline for the others, if you see James, send him our way, okay?"

Ruby sighed, giving him a hesitant nod. "Bring them back, you two. And be careful." She looked down and gave the red-head a small glare. "What do I do if this one wakes up?"

"Uhh, whatever you have too, I guess. But don't trust her with any weapon and for the love of god don't let Vi help her, she's done enough."

"That ain't fair, Aasim." She frowned. "Vi's been through a lot."

"So have I, but I didn't try to stop our friend from saving us." He added, giving the unconscious girls a disdainful look in the process. "Anyway, just don't give them any leeway. But if Minnie wakes up, wake Tenn up." He reminded, giving the younger boy a soft, wistful stare. "He deserves to at least see her."

"That's true..." She looked down, unsure of what to say or think.

"Okay, we'll be back in an hour or two." Aasim turned back to an impatient Aj before trundling off towards the god-forsaken wreck.

#-#

"Damn it." She growled, staring angrily into the water, seeing the tightly packed horde lurking beneath. "There's too many!"

Thankfully, the wreck was too big to fully sink and the floor she had found herself on was just a little too high to completely submerge. Though, the waves managed to keep the floor uncomfortably wet and bring the awful smell of old wood into her nose. Though, right now, she was happy enough to take it over the horrible reminder of her actions.

Looking down at her hands, she could see the sight that brought a heavy sensation down upon her heart.

Looking back, she could see Louis sitting at the very end of the boat, tightly pressed against the corner, away from the water and the cell. His shaking body huddled up and tense, even now, she could hear the small sounds of his shaky breaths, mixed in with his cries.

Shaking her head a little, she went back to focusing on looking for any sign of movement among the shoreline, only to met with the disappointing sight of fucking nothing…. Yet again.

For a moment, she wondered if this was where she'd finally hit the end of her road. She had tried to find something that could make this a little more hopeful, a gun, rations, even a fucking warm coat would have done it for her. But she couldn't see anything, or even find anything. The walkers hadn't so much as budged in the last two hours and swimming would have only made them follow, and she looked back at Louis, trying not to break down again at the sight of him. He wasn't fit to swim, if she was to go now and stand a chance at surviving… She would have to leave him behind.

That was never going to be an option. Never would that be even considered.

To think that she hated Marlon for what he did, regardless of how Louis defended him. But after everything, seeing what Lily had done to him… She was starting to understand his motivation. Maybe he knew what kind of people Lily's group were maybe he knew that if they took Louis in, he'd end up this way, being beaten, tortured and maimed… Broken, unresponsive, lifeless…

She brought a hand to her face out of instinct, only to feel her cheeks wet yet again… She didn't even realise that she had been crying once more.

' _Marlon, you- I can't, fuck…'_ she mentally growled, her anger seeping into her mind-scape. To think that he had actually been made to look at least a little better in her eyes after experiencing this evil, yet worse for exposing Tenn's sisters to them.

"At least you tried, asshole."

Deciding that watching the shoreline wasn't going to do any good, she turned back and took a seat next to Louis, gently wrapping her arms around him protectively and leaning her head on his shoulder, feeling her heart clench when she felt the soft dreads pressing gently onto her head in return.

This should never have happened, not to Louis, not to Aj, not even to Violet.

This entire mess was a fucking bloodbath…

"We're going to get out of here, okay?" She whispered, softly rubbing his back, feeling him nod a little. Her tears began anew, once again…

"We'll get you home..."

2019 #-#

 **So this was meant to come out a week after episode three released…**

 **As you can see, that didn't work out too well. But I am happy to announce that it is finally out and you guys can mock my awful writing skills and even worse punctuational abilities.**

 **So, tell me what you all thought: Good/ Bad/ Ugly/ Sexy etc etc etc.**

 **See you when episode four releases.**

 **-Viperhat**


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